17.1.11

Those of you who have been to up north have eaten inartem. These are various fruit, pickled in a sour (sometimes sweet-sour) liquid of sukang Iloco. They are perfect as a healthy snack, as a side dish to something savory or oily. The frugal Ilocano sometimes eats these as as pulutan (drinking chow).

Above is the wild banana or balayang. Our everyday Manila bananas have very minute seeds (those tiny black specks). Very few varieites in the world contain seeds that are large enough to examine, and the balayang (Musa errans) is one. These "native" wild ones are utilized by cooking them before they are ripe. For inartem, they are soaked in brine and rinsed repeatedly to remove astringency. They result in a very interesting, intriguing texture.

The green mango inartem is similar to our Tagalog buro, but with the pungency of sukang Iloco, and without the saltiness. It is made with the pink-skinned "Hawaiian" variety that is widely grown in the region, a testament to the cultural exchange that has happened due to the wave of Ilocano migration into Hawaii.

12.1.11

Stop by the shop and have our new freshly made organic sodas. Refreshing syrup made in-house with organic fruit and herbs, and some sparkling water. First up, our two flavors: basil-hibiscus and dalandan.

11.1.11

We have new sea salts at the shop. Both from Pangasinan, they are non-iodized, hand harvested, and natural. Both have a "firm" flavor (if you understand what we mean), that is briny and sweet at the tail. Use in everyday cooking, for finishing, and for sprinkling everything from eggs to chocolate.

The finer one may be sprinkled onto your coffee grounds before brewing, to amplify the flavor.

We also have what we call "tropical" granola. It is made with rolled oats, coconut syrup (with a lower glycemic and less cloying nature), cashew nuts, and dried guyabano. These are going fast, so we will try to catch up with production.

Lastly, we have organic, local eucalyptus essential oil. It is perfect for the post-holidays, when we all have some stuffy noses and rooms to clear. We are quite excited to have a locally produced eucalyptus oil to add to our growing roster of locally farmed/harvested and distilled essential oil. More about this next time.